Legacy of the Bow
Anna stepped out onto the balcony and peered outside.
In the living room and master bedroom, the group had succumbed to exhaustion and the weather, fast asleep.
They'd been turning in early in the safe zone and rising at dawn, a routine that left them unable to last long.
Of course, Anna was tired too.
But she didn't want to sleep.
For some reason, she just wasn't in the mood.
With the storm raging outside the window, half the lights out in the house, people sleeping soundly, and the fierce wind battering the building, her mind was restless.
Staring blankly out the window, old memories surfaced.
Anna's grandfather had been a gukgung craftsman who ran a national archery range.
It was a family trade passed down for generations, but it had ended with her father's generation.
Grandpa made bows himself and sold them to others.
So Anna had grown up inseparable from bows.
Though she'd chosen the path of Western archery, she knew more about gukgung than most experts.
As she reminisced about her grandfather, her eye caught the reflection of the bow in the living room window.
In truth, that bow could only fire one shot at a time.
Sometimes it felt frustratingly limiting.
Survival wasn't a sport.
She needed a weapon suited to the situation.
But there was no way to get one.
She didn't know how to make bows either.
"What're you thinking so hard about?"
Han Jaejeong was approaching from the living room, reflected in the window.
Without turning, Anna replied.
"Just... random stuff."
"You've gotten really good with that bow."
Anna turned and stared at him intently.
"Why're you looking at me like that?"
"You really think I'm that good?"
"Yeah. Honestly, even an Olympic gold medalist couldn't match you."
"Hmph."
Anna snorted.
"Truth is... the best archer I've ever seen was my grandfather."
"Was he a competitor too?"
"No, he was a gukgung craftsman. Family trade passed down generations. Anyway, I've got a long way to go before I catch up to him."
An archer who could ride the wind.
The skill to turn even harsh conditions to her advantage.
How long until she could do that?
"You've got plenty of time."
Jaejeong said it like a consolation.
"How do you know when we'll die? 'Plenty of time,' my ass."
"Conversations with you never go smoothly. Is this about earlier?"
"Huh?"
"Sigh, fine. I'm sorry. But it wasn't on purpose. That... butt grab. But did you have to lie like that in front of everyone?"
"What lie? Me?"
Anna's eyes widened in disbelief as she shot back.
"Saying no one's ever touched you? How old are you? You're just making me look like the weirdo."
Jaejeong said while drying a damp cigarette with his lighter.
"...It's true."
In truth, even while training as an athlete, Anna had received countless confessions.
One training photo on SNS would draw floods of comments.
Despite her popularity, she'd never gone to a single mixer with friends.
She'd tag along to pubs sometimes but never touched alcohol.
Dating? Never.
It was all because of archery.
For Anna, raised by a single father, nothing mattered more than medals.
Win at the Olympics, become a coach.
Otherwise, there was no way to cover her mom's hospital bills or her dad's debts from raising her alone.
So even in loneliness and hardship, she'd always had her bow.
It was fate, something she had to accept.
Growing up like that had made her the type to solve things alone rather than lean on others.
"Mind if I smoke?"
Jaejeong, holding the now-dry cigarette, closed the window to the living room and asked.
"You're already closing the door."
"Then just one."
He stepped back a few paces, cracked the window, and lit up.
Anna couldn't fathom why anyone smoked that crap.
"But Anna, it'd be great if you could use that bow up close too. You've got nothing for close range."
"That's..."
Anna's gaze drifted to the bow lying in the living room.
"Because of that bow."
"The bow? What do you mean?"
Her grandfather's handmade bows.
People like Jaejeong thought of bows as long-range weapons only.
But that wasn't the reality.
Bows were the ultimate long-range killers since ancient times.
Yet every era had its exceptional talents.
They used bows in close combat too.
Firing multiple shots at once, rolling on the ground, kicking off walls to leap and shoot.
In a pinch, they'd stab enemies in the chest or throat with arrows.
From her grandfather, Anna had learned techniques unknown to most and ways to use various bows.
No wonder people said she'd grabbed a bow before a spoon.
"Modify it right, and you can fight close range all you want. Faster and deadlier than some knife guy."
"How do you modify it?"
"A craftsman has to do it. We can't."
Anna answered with a disappointed look.
"He's gotta have some pre-made ones."
"Who knows. If we went to Grandpa's place, maybe. But we'll never see it before we die."
"Where's that?"
"What, you gonna take me?"
Anna stared him down.
"No, I mean... if the chance comes up."
"Keep that promise."
"What? Hey, what promise?"
Anna flung open the living room window and stepped inside.
"If the chance comes, for sure."
Whoosh! Click!
"...Unbelievable. Ah, and why's this happening now?"
Jaejeong, oblivious to his cigarette getting soaked in the rain during their talk, roughly tossed the butt outside and muttered.
* * *
A full day passed, and just before dawn.
The late sleepers began stirring one by one.
Jaejeong, who'd dozed off briefly on the master bedroom floor, finally opened his eyes.
Right beside him, Anna was slumped asleep, still sitting up.
The bed next to them was empty.
'Why sleep like this when there's a perfectly good bed?'
"Hey, wake up."
He called out verbally, wary of getting chewed out for touching her again.
No reaction—she must've been deep in sleep despite the awkward position.
"...Whatever."
Jaejeong scooped her up in her sitting posture and laid her on the bed.
He covered her with the blanket and headed to the living room.
There, Kim Chan-yeol and Choi Ha-sa, just woken, were rubbing their eyes.
"You're up, sir?"
Kim Chan-yeol greeted, rubbing his puffy face.
"Yeah, caught a bit of shut-eye. If you're all rested, let's check the rooftop."
"What's up, sir?"
"Gotta scout the area. See how many Infected are crawling around, figure the best direction."
"Ugh, my shoulders. Let's head out then, sir."
Choi Ha-sa grabbed his rifle and stood. Kim Chan-yeol followed suit.
The noise startled Lee Hyun-soo awake.
"Where you going?"
"Rooftop. Keep it down—everyone's sleeping."
The four slipped out the front door and headed up.
The stormy night had been noisy, but no zombies in the stairs.
At the rooftop door, Jaejeong signaled the three.
'I'll go first. Follow with just daggers.'
They nodded understanding.
Bang!
The door swung open.
Thankfully, clear up top.
Cold morning air filled their warmed lungs.
Dawn was just breaking.
Under the bruised sky, the storm's devastation lay bare.
"No joke."
Choi Ha-sa muttered at the wrecked streets.
Already a mess, now total chaos.
"Trees all uprooted, sir."
Kim Chan-yeol pointed to the row of fallen trees along the main road, roots exposed.
"Whoa... how hard did the wind blow? Check the building next door—windows all smashed."
Lee Hyun-soo pointed at the shattered panes.
Surviving the night safely was thanks to the villa's location.
Jaejeong surveyed.
The villa, surrounded by shops, had a narrow lot and unremarkable access.
Lucky, really.
Nearby buildings had blocked the wind.
"You got binoculars?"
"Yes, sir. Here."
Kim Chan-yeol handed them over.
Jaejeong adjusted and scanned.
Storm gone, visibility clear—Infected everywhere.
'This many? Wasn't like this when we came up from the manhole. Or did I miss it?'
The view through the lenses was packed with Infected.
'Well, Seoul's population... endless, obviously.'
Jaejeong forced acceptance, studying terrain.
For fireworks arrows, the school field seemed best.
Low ground, easy to gather without straying.
Some followed noises but stopped at walls or silence—better to lure to open space.
Then Kim Chan-yeol spoke.
"But where's the school, sir?"
"Over there. Hard to spot?"
"Yes. But will arrows reach that far?"
"Should."
Jaejeong recalled Anna sniping from hospital roof to underground lot.
Far shot then; this was doable...
Suddenly, last night's words hit him.
'Modify it right, and you can fight close range all you want. Faster and deadlier than some knife guy.'
Her disappointed eyes too.
'If the chance comes...'
"Let's head down. Once Anna wakes, fire a few fireworks arrows from here, watch 'em clear out, then move."
"Got it, sir."
The four returned to the villa.
Inside still midnight-dark.
Jaejeong considered waking them but let them sleep—long day ahead.
Instead, they hunkered in a small room.
Quiet talks wouldn't disturb anyone.
They filled jugs from the purifier, cracked cans for breakfast.
Not abundant, but tuna and ham made a solid meal.
Compared to starving at the hospital, it was a buffet.
"Why aren't you eating?"
Jaejeong asked Lee Hyun-soo, sitting idle.
"Not hungry."
"Don't be a kid—eat. Who feels like eating? Big day ahead. Eat."
"He's right, eat up, sir. Later, no time even if you're starving."
Kim Chan-yeol chimed in.
But Hyun-soo didn't budge.
"Something happen overnight?"
"No, not that... but..."
"But what."
"What happens to us now?"
Hyun-soo blurted from the heart.
"What? We hit KEPCO HQ, back to safe zone."
"No, not that. Just our country's like this—when do we escape? Or rot in this hell forever?"
"Good news soon. Don't know details, but if we're ready, aid without leaving. World's not that heartless. Self-interest, sure."
"Who'd take us? Realistically. That Captain Kang said China sinks anything crossing the sea. All starve here?"
Kim Chan-yeol and Choi Ha-sa paused mid-bite at Hyun-soo's words.
Choi Ha-sa especially looked queasy.
Unlike Chan-yeol, he wore his feelings openly.
He set down the can, cleared his throat, chugged water.
Infected People